Category Archives: On Lodging and Venues

Lodging and Venue related Rants & Raves

Top Places To See When Traveling In Texas

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Texas is one of the most popular and most exciting states in the nation. This place just so happens to be America’s second most populous state, and it hosts many of the nation’s most affluent cities such as Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and Fort Worth. The Lone Star State consists of more than 260,000 square-miles, and it has some of the very best historical sites, national parks, amusement parks, train rides and science museums. Another great reason for coming to this destination is that there are a number of family-related activities that people can enjoy as a group. It’s time to pack your bags and take a trip to America’s last frontier.

Houston Museum of Natural Science

One of the absolute best things to see up close and personal is the Houston Museum of Natural Science. This extraordinary museum has been around since 1909 and over 2 million people visit this place every year. Science and education meets at this intersection as visitors will get a chance to view dinosaur exhibits, get a chance to see some of the rarest gemstones as well as see some of the best taxidermied animals. Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction.

San Antonio Riverwalk

The San Antonio Riverwalk is by far one of the most interesting and relaxing destinations on the planet. Located in Texas’ second most populous city, this destination provides up to 2.5 miles of walkway along the San Antonio River. Did you know that the Riverwalk is the most visited attraction in the state of Texas? Yes, this is 100 percent true as this place offers artisan shows, festivals and parades. This long channel of water was first designed to provide flood control for the city, but as of today, it is lined with affluent restaurants, lodging facilities, museums and shopping outlets. TripAdvisor.com states that over 76 percent of people who visited this area gave it an excellent rating of 4.5.

The Fort Worth Zoo

Who aren’t amazed at wild animals? The next great attraction is basically the Forth Worth Zoo. There are over 542 species of birds, reptiles and animals here. Kids will get a thrill while viewing silverback gorillas, lions, tigers and other majestic animals. The prestigious USA Travel Guide ranks Forth Worth Zoo as the 5th best zoo in the US. This huge wildlife refuge hosts a splash park, a carousel, a train ride and a theater.

Schlitterbahn Waterpark and Resort

This particular waterpark is a fan-favorite as it allows you to beat the heat with downhill racing slides, a water coaster, a lazy river ride and pools. SW&R is located in New Braunfels, and it has a variety of attractions for kids and adults. Swim-up pools and cabanas roundoff some of the more popular venues here.

There you have it! The great state of Texas has many activities to participate in, and it has much to see. All in all, visiting Texas should definitely be on your bucket list.

Did you enjoy reading about travel to Texas? Maybe you might like some more articles on travel, like 5 Other Must-See Beach Vacation Destinations or 5 Local Things Not To Miss in San Francisco!

 

References:

MommyPoppins

Visit Fort Worth

Avis

All Storage Online

Travel day

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Travel

We all love it, but travel can just as easily go wrong. I have to say the hardest thing about the early morning flight is actually the early morning itself. In order to catch a 6 AM flight out of SFO,  it means leaving as early as 4:15 AM.

As luck would have it, it was a pretty uneventful travel experience. The airport was a little more crowded than usual but I managed to get on the plane, make my connections and found myself a Boston, 15 minutes ahead of schedule, albeit 12 hours later.

Next stop, Residence Inn Seaport downtown to meet Paul, with old friends Josh & Brent in tow, who came in from San Diego and would also be staying Ptown.

Residence Inn Downtown 

Any visit to Boston for me that is non-work related, usually begins and ends with a stay at this facility. Between the friendliness of the staff, the super convenient location for both water events and inner city Boston events, just makes for it to be a perfect place to relax & recharge.

This inspired, converted building turns the stay into something that feels like you’re actually on a “urban adventure”. From it’s super airy atrium, to the modern desired modular rooms; this place, has lots of nooks and crannies to explore. Each of the rooms we’ve stayed in, has a slightly different layout which is how they all fit into the natural structure of the building. Giving those who live in tradition houses an opportunity at staying in a super cool urban environment.

Close to public transportation, including the ferry for those folks headed down to the Cape. They’ve got in-hotel full service coffee shop that caters to the neighborhood, as well as it’s traditional Residence Inn morning buffet. Much like other Residence Inns, the staff tend toward the awesome side of hosting. Working at whatever they can to help make your stay the best.

Word up though; while not the most expensive of the hotels in this area it isn’t inexpensive. So plan ahead, sign up with Marriott deals so that you can utilize your points or discounts as appropriate. This site also is within a short walk to the childrens museum; so on this visit also staying were more families than previous stays which made navigating the breakfast buffett a little “treacherous” as not all children (and some adults it would seem) have been taught proper public shared food space/buffett curtesies or hygiene practices. So if you want particularly kid or family-friendly you might want to call ahead to find out if there’s a kid focused weekend happening. Another fav feature is the “grocery option”. Many of the facilities will now do some basic grocery runs to stock up the very workable kitchens. Billing your rooms and saving you time.

Dinner and what not

This is a great central location for nice walk to the italian area of town. Which we do each trip for pizzia at Regina Pizzeria (the original one). If you want calm, quiet dinner – this isn’t the place. It’s loud and ethnic as only a small family place can be. The 30 min walk, takes you through several community parks, right by the front of the Boston Children Museum, which is sure to have something fun going on and eventually right into the Italian section of town.

Travel to Provincetown

Our next stop of the trip starts on Saturday am, and brings us to to the Ferry. Which normally would take us out over the water into Provincetown. But for the first time, rough weather water warning meant this trip taking a motor coach supplied from the Bay State Cruise Company to get us to Provincetown. [By the way, “rough weather water” warnings means more than a few passengers on the early ferry, ended much “green around the gills” than normal]

Now, while I will miss the boat ride, I don’t need a tossing boat & seasickness to start my day. I say as long as “someone else takes the wheel, and it’s not me driving” go for it.  Needless to say the 2.5 hour drive by coach bus, ended up almost 3.5, but was pleasently stressless it a bit cramped. [hint – this is the Cape, time flows differently so 2.5 hours = 3.5, its new “old” math for the Cape]

Getting Settled

Once we got settled in at Fisherman’s Cove, our “home away from home”, it was time for a short walk and some food. Since it was already 4:00, we opted for sandwiches now and diner later. We walked further down the West End to Relish, (I wrote about Relish in previous trips as well here (2015) and here 2014) bringing them back to the condo and our first waterside meal of the summer. Then it was time for the boys to go down for naps, while I took a walk to get caught up with my local peeps and the “news” around town.

The day slowly came to an end with a pleasant sunset watching on the main deck, while we waited for everyone to get ready for dinner. For the opening night, we took a short walk into town for burgers at Local 186  (I wrote about Local 186 previously here). Closing out the evening with a stroll to walk off the dinner and meander around till we settled in for the night.

Over all, a good first day.

 

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Casino & LaCrosse In CT

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Overall The Arena at the Mohegan Sun Casino a nice facility; good sized, and has a solid sound system. It’s clean and does’t feel as “cold” as some arena’s. Staff are pretty cordial from scanning through food consessions. My biggest disappointment and the reason I don’t to give it more than a three if I were rating it out of 5, is around its no “outside” food rule.
We were traveling with a senior, and  had stopped to have a meal in the casino while the kids were watching the lacrosse game. Our plan was then to head out to watch the kids actually get a chance to play on the field after playing in the casino and eating.

IMG_9971We had eaten at Hash House A Go Go, so as the real game ended and we entered to see the kids,  they wouldn’t let us bring the leftovers in. Forcing us to toss it.

So that was a disappointment and with the money spent in the casino and for the meal that we had enjoyed, the experience “left a bad taste in my mouth”.

If I were in town and planning to use the Arena again I would be less inclined to make use of the casino and food as part of the package evening in the future.